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Tuesday, July 17, 2012

NASL Week 15 Recap

Article by Doak Gips

Storylines, storylines everywhere! Where do I start? We
could start with the standings of the NASL, in which the top four teams are all
separated one point each? We could talk about the resurgence of the Atlanta
Silverbacks, who, despite having a whopping -14 goal differential, have moved
out of the cellar and have pushed Edmonton down into the bottom. How about how
San Antonio hasn't looked quite so invincible this past week, losing one, and
needing a late equalizer to salvage a road point. I feel like I'm missing
something though. Oh. Right. The New York Cosmos are joining the NASL, and
beginning play in 2013. I'm not sure even where to start with this news.

For the clueless, which you probably aren't if you're
reading this, the Cosmos were the powerhouse team of the first incarnation of
the NASL. With the likes of Pele and Giorgio Chinaglia, the Cosmos were the
brand and face of the league. The name itself will likely raise the stature of
the NASL to a completely different level next season, with increased media
presence and a higher level of competition. The Cosmos most certainly have
their eye on MLS though, as Don Garber himself has stated that MLS is still
wanting a second team in New York City, and the Cosmos would pretty easily fit
that bill. To all aspiring Cosmos fans reading this, go support your team,
wherever they end up playing. You'll only be helping your own cause. It really
is a great time to be a soccer fan in North America.

This also adds another interesting dynamic to the USL-PRO
vs. NASL argument. While the USL-PRO league were able to add a market that the
NASL was looking at in Tucson, the NASL clearly came back with the hay-maker by
grabbing arguably the biggest brand in US Soccer history. It's still an
interesting dynamic, and one that will continue to play out through the next
years. In an incredibly small, and mostly pointless sample size, the USL-PRO
have outperformed the NASL teams, as three USLPRO teams advanced to the
quarterfinals of the US Open Cup, while no NASL teams made it there.

Whew. There's plenty to talk about, but lets get to whats
most important right now, and that's the games. Race you to the recaps!

San Antonio Scorpions vs. Puerto Rico Islanders

A midweek clash with the two top teams in the NASL? Thanks
scheduling guys! San Antonio were looking to keep their lead on the top of the
table, while Puerto Rico are really pushing to get back up there. They pushed
hard enough last Wednesday, as they defeated the Scorpions 1-0 in front 2,025
fans at the Bayamon Soccer Complex. The Scorpions were a bit disjointed on the
night, taking a total of 12 shots, including 9 in the second half, but could
not find the back of the net. The Islanders goal came in the 25th
minute as a cross from Noah Delgado found Nick Addlery. The Islanders actually
had two other goals disallowed in the first half, as one was called for offside
and the other was called for a foul on Scorpions keeper Daryl Sattler. This win
moved the Islanders at the time into a tie for first place with the Scorpions.

Tampa Bay Rowdies vs. Minnesota Stars FC

In a rare Thursday night clash, the other two teams pushing
for the top spots in the league faced off, with Minnesota coming out on the
winning side, beating Tampa Bay 2-1 in front of 2,164 in attendance at NSC
Stadium. The Stars scored first, with a low blistering cross from Lucas
Rodriguez, which found an unmarked and unpressured Martin Nunez, who calmly
placed it by Rowdies keeper Jeff Antinella. The Stars doubled their money right
before halftime, as a header from Nunez barely missed, clipping the post and
falling to a diving Kentaro Takada(Ahem), who was
able to slam the ball behind Antinella. The Rowdies didn't give up, and outshot
the Stars in the second half, 8-3, but could only find the back of the net
once. But that once was a beautiful goal, as a cross from Mike Ambersley found
a streaking Matt Clare, who showed a great amount of class with a fantastic
chip over Stars keeper Matthew VanOekel. The Rowdies had one more great chance
as a lofted ball found Daniel Antoniuk's noggin, but he could only direct it
barely outside the post.

Puerto Rico Islanders vs. Atlanta Silverbacks

That Wynalda pickup is looking like a pretty solid pickup
for the Silverbacks, isn't it? The Silverbacks won their 2nd game in
a row after beating the Islanders 2-1 at Silverbacks Park, with 4,869 watching
the home debut of Interim coach Eric Wynalda. This week saw Wynalda bringing in
two more Cal FC players, bringing the total up to five players from that team.
It was 2nd year Silverbacks player who scored the first goal of the
match though, as Nico Cololuca cleaned up a ball that wasn't cleared far enough
by Islanders 'keeper Richard Martin. The Silverbacks went up with a 2-0 lead in
the 2nd half as a huge floating ball, was played absolutely
brilliantly by Silverbacks forward Matt Horth off his chest, turned and ripped
the ball into Martin, who could only get a few fingers on it. The Islanders
responded like they have all season, but this time it was just too late. In the
86th minute, an over-the-top ball found a sprinting, and wide open,
Gregory Richardson, who hit a fantastic curler around Silverbacks 'keeper
Daniel Illyes. The loss opened up the door for the Scorpions to take to the top
the table again.

San Antonio Scorpions vs. Fort Lauderdale Strikers

Which they did halfway. Not really the Scorpions way about
going things this year, but on the back-end of a mini-road trip, you'll take
any points you can get. Which is exactly what the Scorpions did, even if they
needed a late equalizer to match a late game winner, and got the 2-2 draw at
Lockhart Stadium with 5,223 in attendance. The Strikers took their first lead
of the match with a nicely chested down ball by Andy Herron, who then smacked
it far post past Scorpions 'keeper Daryl Sattler. The Scorpions came back with
a score within the first 15 minutes of the second half, as a nice fake by Pablo
Campos left him with some space behind the defense, and he was able to knock it
past Strikers 'keeper Matt Glaeser. The Scorpions then proceeded to make things
more difficult for themselves, as Ryan Cochrane was shown a red card in the 63rd
minute. The Silverbacks took advantage of this, and scored what looked to be
the game winner as Andy Herron hit his brace with a nice bending free kick that
left Sattler flat-footed. NASL goal scoring leader Pablo Campos would have none
of it though, as he was able to get a shot past Glaeser deep into stoppage
time. But while Sattler was beat twice on the night, if it wasn't for his
ridiculous, save-of-the-week-in-any-league, the Scorpions could've lost this
even deeper into stoppage time. A free kick that was gunning for the top corner
was stopped by a full stretch Sattler, who saved the draw, and top of the
league standings for the Scorpions.

Tampa Bay Rowdies vs. FC Edmonton

The Rowdies have been working hard to keep pace with the
Islanders and the Scorpions, and they continued to make it more interesting,
beating Edmonton 1-0 at Clarke Stadium in front of 1,688 fans. The Eddies, or
the Drillers for tonight as Edmonton were wearing their throwback kits, were
not without their scoring chances, as they nearly doubled the shots total of
the Rowdies. The Rowdies even threw the Eddies/Drillers a bone, as a red card
was shown to Rowdies midfielder Tsuyoshi Yoshitake with about 15 minutes left
in the first half. Yet Edmonton couldn't capitalize on the man advantage the
whole game. The second half brought the heavy, heavy rains and the internet
video feed was lost for a sizeable portion of the match, including the Rowdies
game winner, which was scored by Luke Mulholland.

It was mentioned earlier, but it should be said again that
the top four teams in the NASL are separated by just three total points, which
is just crazy. The only midweek game of the week places Minnesota against Fort
Lauderdale, and the normal weekend schedule includes Carolina taking on
Minnesota, Atlanta facing Edmonton, Tampa Bay going against Puerto Rico, and
San Antonio taking on Fort Lauderdale.

Here's your updated crazy table.

TEAM

GP

W

T

L

GD

PTS

San Antonio
Scorpions

16

8

5

3

9

29

Puerto Rico
Islanders

17

8

4

5

7

28

Tampa Bay
Rowdies

17

8

3

6

2

27

Minnesota Stars
FC

16

7

5

4

3

26

Carolina RailHawks

16

5

6

5

2

21

Fort Lauderdale
Strikers

17

5

6

6

-4

21

Atlanta
Silverbacks

17

3

5

9

-14

14

FC Edmonton

16

3

4

9

-5

13

I really would like to hear your opinions on all the
happenings of the NASL from this past week, so come find me on twitter @DoakGips,
or start up a chat with me on the MLS Reserves Facebook page.